Entangled
by Aris1013
Summary: Merlin has been missing for three days and presumed dead. With Nimueh attacking Camelot Arthur never got a chance to look for his body, but when a half dead Merlin comes stumbling back to the kingdom, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered.
1. Not Over

**AN: This is my version of the story about Nimueh trapping Merlin in the tree in some legends. Takes place after season 1. Enjoy!**

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The guards were extra vigilant. They had just won their five day battle against a horrible evil, the sorceress Nimueh. She came in disguise and began a dark battle against Camelot. She wanted to take it for her own, so she could stop the ban on magic. Eventually the knights got her cornered and she retreated, but she still remained out there somewhere. Although they took her retreat as victory everyone remained on their toes in case of another attack. Sir Leon and the other guard were cautious when they saw the figure approaching.

The figure was hunched over clutching itself. Its movements were ragged and clumsy. They thought it may be a trick, but then they saw the blood. The crimson drops fell off the person and splashed in the snow ruining its perfection. The guards stepped closer with their staffs out just in case it was Nimueh, but when they got closer to the figure they recognized it immediately.

"Merlin?" Leon looked horrified at the scene in front of him.

The servants head was down, but he looked up with his eyes. The guards ran up to Merlin, and looked him over. He did not look good, and that was confirmed when he fell into the arms of Leon. The knight, still holding Merlin, looked at his companion.

"Get Gaius and inform the Prince immediately!"

The other guard nodded and ran towards the castle. Merlin had been missing for almost three days. He was suspected of being dead after the knights found his torn scarf on the day of his disappearance. They never found the body, however, but with the ongoing battle they did not receive a chance to look.

Leon carried Merlin to his chambers where Gaius was waiting for him. When he got to the cluttered room he sat Merlin down on the bed. Gaius was rushing around gathering supplies and trying not to think about where Merlin had been for the past few days. Leon stepped back and watched as Gaius began to look over the boy. He could already feel the guilt of everyone close to Merlin, they thought he was dead, but if they had looked harder they could have prevented this from happening.

"Did he say anything before passing out?" Gaius was looking under Merlin's eyelids.

"No, nothing. Is he going to be okay?" Leon wished Merlin had said something to him.

"There is extensive damage, he's lost a lot of blood, but the wounds don't look infected." He continued to look the boy over. "The cut on his side is worse."

Merlin was covered in small cuts and dirt, but there was a large gash on his ribs that looked deep. Gaius suspected that Merlin tried to heal himself, which prevented infection, but the boy had not quite grasped healing magic yet. The man gave a disconcerted look when he cut Merlin's shirt away. There was a very nasty bruise covering his right shoulder and the bone looked misaligned.

"His shoulder is dislocated; we need to pop in back in place."

"Let me help." Arthur was standing wide eyed and slightly pale at the door. As soon as the guard told him about Merlin he rushed to Gaius'.

Gaius looked up from Merlin. "Sire, you don't need to do that."

Arthur stepped forward. "Yes I do."

The old man knew that there was no way to convince Arthur otherwise. The Prince had suffered from many dislocated shoulders in the past. Whether they were on himself or his other knights, they had never affected him much. Arthur wished he could say this time was like all the others, but there was something about seeing Merlin there unconscious that hurt him deep inside.

Gaius lifted Merlin upright and looked at the Prince. "You remember, quick and clean."

Arthur nodded and grabbed Merlin's wrist and upper arm, while Gaius held the boy's shoulders tight. Arthur took a deep breath and yanked Merlin's arm towards him. Leon internally flinched at the pop, he too had seen many dislocated shoulders, but seeing Merlin like this hurt more. Gaius messaged the shoulder and leaned him back onto the bed. He got up to get a sling to put Merlin's arm in. Arthur was staring at his friend.

"Where has he been all this time?" His mind flashed back to that day in the woods when Merlin disappeared.

"We aren't sure sire," Leon said. "He just came up to the front gates on his own, no one was following him. He passed out before he could say anything."

Arthur got up from the bed to let Gaius finish helping Merlin. "Gaius? Is there any way to tell what happened, was he just lost out there all this time?"

Gaius wrapped Merlin's arm. "I'm not sure sire, there are many scratches on him, more than just getting lost in the woods. It looks as if he was in a struggle of some sort. It takes a lot of power to dislocate a shoulder and the gash on his ribs does not look like an accident."

"I'll leave you to your work. Inform me when he wakes."

"Of course sire."

Arthur left the room and Leon followed. Gaius continued to work on Merlin's wounds. He took care of the worst of them, but there were many tiny cuts all over his ward's body. He knew the boy must have been exhausted and needed rest, but he wished he would wake up and tell him what had happened to him. The last few days for Gaius had been Hell. When Arthur and the other knights returned with nothing but Merlin's scarf he thought the worst as they all did. He hoped that Merlin was just preoccupied battling Nimueh somewhere, but when the sorceress appeared in Camelot again, Gaius thought for sure that Merlin was out there, either severely hurt or already dead. The battle had distracted Gaius a little, but Merlin remained in his mind the entire time.

Gaius had fallen asleep at his work table. He did not want to go to bed, in case Merlin awoke, but he could not keep his eyes open any longer. He was surprised in the middle of the night to hear a whimper from the other side of the room, Gaius perked up and rushed over to Merlin's side. He was still asleep but seemed to have slipped into a dream.

"Merlin." The man touched Merlin's good shoulder.

Merlin's eyes shot open glowing gold and a bottle of something on the table burst.

"Merlin! It's alright you're safe now."

The boy looked up at Gaius then around the room confused. "G-Gaius? How?"

"It's alright, here." Gaius grabbed a cup of water and helped Merlin take small sips. "You walked up to the gates today, do you remember?"

Merlin thought back to the last thing he remembered. "A little, Leon was there."

Gaius nodded. "That's right." He hoped Merlin would begin to tell Gaius where he had been.

Merlin looked like he was in shock. His eyes were wide and his hands were shaky. "The battle, is Arthur okay?"

"Yes, he's fine, they corned Nimueh and she retreated." He paused for a moment. "Did she do this to you Merlin?"

A haunted look crossed Merlin's eyes. "I thought I had her, but...this isn't over, she's still out there Gaius, and she won't stop until she's won."

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**AN: Thanks so much for reading! I hope everyone likes this story, if there is anything particular you would like to see out of this story let me know! **


	2. The Incident

Gaius wanted to get more out of Merlin, but the boy did not seem ready to talk about what had happened to him. The poor boy was shaky and pale. Whatever Nimueh had done was still affecting him. Gaius checked Merlin over once again and made sure he was okay, before giving him a sleeping drought and letting him rest. He had promised Arthur he would alert him when Merlin was awake, but the man knew that he would want answers. Merlin needed time to think of a story that had nothing to do with his magic before confronting Arthur, and he would need to tell Gaius what exactly had occurred first.

Gaius had fallen asleep again, but this time on purpose. In the morning he got his supplies ready for the day and after a few hours Merlin awoke. He was still exhausted, but he was getting antsy lying in bed.

"Gaius I just want to get out of this bed." The more he sat around the more he had to remember what happened to him in the woods.

Gaius gently helped Merlin set up. "Merlin you are in no shape to be walking about, now you can sit up, but that is it, do you understand me?"

Merlin nodded, too tired to protest.

"Good, not drink this and try to eat some bread." He gave Merlin some water and handed him a piece of bread.

Merlin was starving and began to gobble down the bread.

"Not too fast or you will make yourself sick."

Merlin slowed down a bit, but the bread still disappeared rather quick. Gaius sat down next to the bed waited for Merlin to finish. Merlin knew from the man's eyes that he wanted to know what had happened to his ward during the past few days. The event that occurred was still fresh in his mind, not to mention the pain he still felt. His shoulder and side felt like they were on fire, but they did not hurt near as much as when he received the wounds. Gaius sat in silence, waiting for the boy to talk. Merlin knew he only wanted to help, so he closed his eyes and decided to get the story over with.

"We didn't even know Nimueh had anything to do with it. I thought she was dead Gaius, on the Island of the Blessed, I thought I killed her, but I felt magic in the woods, and then something started attacking us. I saw a figure, so I followed it and then I saw her. She was smiling like the whole thing was meant to get me on my own. And then…we fought."

Merlin's eyes were unfocused and looking off at nothing.

"I thought this time I would beat her for sure, I would not let her win. But then she caught me off guard." Merlin stopped as he remembered his battle with Nimueh. "Vines began to wrap around me, I tried using magic to cut them, but more came. The next thing I know, I am being drug across the snow, and into the roots of a large tree."

Gaius' eyes went wide. "She trapped you in a tree?"

Merlin's silence was enough to give Gaius the answer. He wanted to press on, but did not want to traumatize the poor boy.

"That must have been what made the marks on you." Gaius looked down at the bandage poking out from under Merlin's sleeve. He strange, almost burn like marks all over him and now Gaius knew it was because of the vines pulling him into a tree.

Merlin was done talking about what happened for the time being, but that did not stop the memories from flooding his mind. It had all started when Camelot had been attacked in the middle of the night by a sorcerer. Whoever it was, they killed two knights and fled the Citadel, but left a few parting gifts. Nasty creatures that Gaius said could only be destroyed if the source of the creatures were destroyed. Uther had decided to send Arthur and a group of knights to destroy a stone that was keeping these creatures alive. Merlin of course was to go with them, because he would always be there to protect Arthur.

Gaius told them that the stone would be close because the magic would weaken the further away from the creatures it was. They set out the following morning to find the stone and destroy it. While they rode out of Camelot, Merlin wished that other people with magic would see that using it to try and hurt Camelot and the king just hurt their cause further. As long as sorcerers used their magic for evil, it would be treated as evil and those without magic would be blinded by their actions. Merlin pulled his cloak tighter as his horse galloped in the snow.

In the forest Arthur and the Knights found some tracks and got off their horses to follow them. It was not long before they were getting attacked by an invisible force. The knights stayed alert trying to find the source of the attack, but then fireballs began to come through the trees. Merlin had sensed the magic before the attack started and when he saw the fireballs it brought back bad memories of a few months before. Merlin was frantically looking around trying to pinpoint where the fire bursts were coming from, but then he saw a figure. He looked back at Arthur and the others, but they were all spread out in the forest and did not see the person.

Merlin followed the figure into a secluded part of the forest. He lost them for a moment, but then the cloaked figure was standing in front of him. Merlin held out his hand ready to attack when the cloaked figure put down their hood. Merlin's eyes widened as Nimueh stood in front of him smiling. She looked just as she did the last time he saw her.

"How? I killed you!" Merlin could not wrap his head around the priestess that was in front of him.

Nimueh laughed. "You thought you killed me, I thought you did to, but I found my way back to the living, and now it's time to take back what's mine."

"I won't let you do that, I failed once, but I won't again." Merlin blasted the woman into a tree, but her eyes turned gold as soon as she hit the ground and she spoke a few ancient words.

At first Merlin did not think anything happened, but then he felt something grab his ankle. He looked down and saw a tree vine snake its way up his leg. Merlin was able to use magic to cut it away, but more came. As the vines wrapped around him, Merlin continued cutting them away, but he could not keep up with the rapid pace they were coming at. Before Merlin knew it he was being slammed to the ground and dragged through the snow. He clawed at the cold ground, but the vines around his wrists pulled him harder. Merlin looked up at Nimueh who was off of the ground.

"With you out of the way, Camelot will be mine." She laughed and watched as Merlin was dragged towards the trunk of a fallen tree.

Merlin was in a panic, he could not do anything to stop the vines from coming. Nimueh would kill Arthur and Uther, then take Camelot for herself. As the vines dragged him, Merlin felt himself fall into branches, he was falling into the tree. He felt the branches tear into his skin as the vines pulled him further and further down, until Merlin was sure he was deep below the earth. He tried gripping anything as the vines pulled him, but he could not keep a grip on the icy tree. There was a little light in the depth of the tree, but not much. Merlin was completely tangled up in vines and branches and could barely move.

On the surface Nimueh smiled at the silence. She knew she would not have to worry about Merlin any longer. She also knew that Arthur and the others would come looking for him soon. She looked around at the state of the ground and knew they would be able to tell there was a struggle of some sort, but what sweetened it all for the priestess was the torn red scarf that had gotten caught on the tree during Merlin's decent to the center of it. She knew the knights would not be able to piece together the truth, but conclude their poor servant had perished.

Nimueh set off towards Camelot to make sure Arthur and the others got a surprise when they returned. She knew they had found the stone that was powering her creatures, but she had wanted them to. It was all a ploy to get Merlin out of the way, and into Camelot. Without Merlin around Camelot would be hers.

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**AN: Thanks for reading! **


	3. Confrontation

**Thank you India Moore, Newsie4eva, and Mike (no sorry, no romance in this one!) for reviewing! I appreciate it! **

**AN: Sorry this is so late, school was insane this year, but I am done now, so hopefully I can update at a decent rate again. **

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Merlin knew it was just a matter of time before Arthur came asking questions about what happened to him. He had no idea what to tell him. His run in with Nimueh was one thing, but getting out of the tree was another. He thought back to his escape and still could not believe he was alive.

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It felt like forever. The vines were tightly wrapped all around Merlin and he could feel every cut they had made. The more Merlin struggled the tighter the vines got. He realized very quickly that this was not a normal tree, but a very enchanted one. He had to calm down and compose himself. Merlin closed his eyes and concentrated on his magic, he let out a force that made the vines fall away. Merlin did not waste time, he brushed the vines off and began to struggle trying to crawl to the top of the trunk. He thought he was going to be free, but then the vines came back in full force. One grabbed his arm and hard enough for Merlin to fall back onto the vines. He heard a pop when he landed.

As soon as Merlin hit the bottom of the trunk the vines wrapped themselves around Merlin pulling tighter than before. This time there were more vines as well. The boy's shoulder felt like it was on fire, it was definitely out of place. The vines were drowning him, taking over his body completely. Magic was not working and he was exhausted from trying. He could barely move, but Merlin knew that Nimueh was going to destroy Camelot, and he could not do anything from inside the tree.

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Merlin was snapped out of his thoughts when someone knocked on his door. He looked up to see the prince standing there with a sympathetic look on his face. Merlin knew this meant that he had run out of time to think of what to tell Arthur, he still had no idea exactly what he could say. Arthur came in and sat down on the chair next to Merlin's bed.

He looked Merlin over. "How are you feeling?"

"I'll be alright Arthur." He sounded pathetic saying it, he was still tired and hurt.

"Look we didn't…we looked for you, but…there was nothing, it looked like a struggle and we found your scarf, but that was it, and we knew Camelot was getting attacked…"

"Arthur, it's alright, I know how it must have looked, and it would not have mattered how much you searched, you would not have found me." Merlin looked at his hands.

Arthur shifted a little in his seat. "What did happen to you out there?"

Merlin waited a bit before answering. "Nimueh."

"She attacked you?"

Merlin nodded.

Arthur looked confused. "Why you?"

Merlin shrugged. "I don't know. I saw someone when we got attacked in the woods and followed them, turned out to be her."

Arthur was staring at Merlin's shoulder. "What did she do to you?"

The servant was not sure what to say. "Umm…she trapped me, in a tree."

"A tree?"

Merlin gave a small nod. "Yes."

"But how did you escape?"

Merlin looked up at Arthur and thought about that. He remembered how much it hurt to be in that tree, surrounded by vines and branches. Hours were spent trapped there while Merlin tried to center all his energy. He knew that if he could just focus his magic then he would be able to escape, but at that moment the pain was all he could think about.

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Merlin had known that she attacked him so she could set her sights on the kingdom. Without Merlin in her way, she could conquer it with little effort. He tried relaxing as much as possible, and found that the vines had loosened a little bit. Merlin closed his eyes and focused on his magic, he could feel it build up more and more until he unleashed a burst of magic. He felt the vines and branches begin to recede back into the earth. The tree rumbled and Merlin knew that this was his only chance, he had to crawl out of the tree or he would be stuck there forever.

There was not much time for Merlin to get out, he crawled as fast as he could with an injured arm, and made his way through the tunnels of the tree. It was almost like a cavern. The tunnels of the tree were widening and Merlin was able to move faster. A strange whooshing sound came from behind him, and Merlin knew the vines were coming back, ready to constrict him back down into the tree.

A little ahead of him, Merlin could see light; he was almost out of the tree. Merlin could not remember how he got from one end of the tree to the opening, but he was there and almost free. Merlin grabbed the edge of the opening with his good hand and hauled himself up and out. The cold winter air felt refreshing compared to that of the inside of the tree. When Merlin was about half way out he felt a vine wrap around his ankle and begin to pull him back down into the tree. He grabbed the outside of the trunk with both hands, and arms and held on. His shoulder felt like it was on fire, but then he felt a terrible pain in his side.

Merlin screamed and did not even realize his magic went out with it, but it was enough to cause the vine to fall away. Merlin pulled himself out of the tree and rolled over on the ground. His whole body was shaking and Merlin was out of breath, he felt exhausted but was worried the vines would come back. He looked at his side and found a large gash about five inches long. A branch must have dug its way in when the vine pulled him down. With his hurt arm he put pressure on the wound and used his good arm to stand up. After figuring out where he was and what direction Camelot was in, Merlin walked.

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"Sire?"

Merlin looked away from Arthur and saw Gaius standing in the room.

Arthur nodded towards Gaius. "Ah yes, I just wanted to come see how Merlin was doing. He told me about Nimueh and was about to tell me how he escaped."

"I am sorry sire, but that will have to wait for another day, Merlin needs rest." Gaius knew Merlin had used magic to escape, and would not be able to explain that to Arthur.

At first Arthur wanted to protest but he stood up. "Of course, I will let you rest." He began to walk out of the room, but looked back at Merlin. "I'm glad you're alright."

Merlin gave him a small smile and a nod in return.

After Arthur left Gaius checked Merlin over.

Merlin smiled at him. "Thank you, I'm still not sure what to tell Arthur."

"Oh I'm sure you will think of something."

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The next day Merlin was sick of sitting around. He needed to get up and do something, so he decided to see if Arthur needed him for anything. Gaius was already out doing his rounds so Merlin left and headed to the Prince's chambers. It was past breakfast, but he knew that Arthur would be back from his meeting with his father about that attack on Camelot.

When Arthur walked in his chambers he did not expect to see Merlin there picking up.

Merlin put some of Arthur's clothes in a basket. "A few days without me and this place looks like it's been hit by a storm or something."

"Merlin, what are you doing here? You are supposed to be resting." He shut his door and came into the room.

"I am done resting, I could not sit still anymore."

"Look you are still hurt and pretty much useless to me with one arm, so you do not need to do that." Arthur took the dirty tunic out of Merlin's hands and threw it in the basket.

"I am not that hurt, and besides I can manage fine with one arm."

Arthur's face got serious. "How did that happen?"

Merlin looked at the ground. "The first time I tried to escape, vines pulled me back down."

"That must have been, awful."

Merlin shrugged.

"If you need to talk about it…" Arthur's blue eyes met Merlin's and the servant could see the guilt.

"It's not your fault Arthur, there is nothing you could have done."

Arthur nodded. "I know, I just wish I would have been there."

Merlin smiled. "I am here now, so it's alright." He went back to picking things up.

"How exactly did you get out of the tree Merlin?" Arthur still wanted to know.

"I don't know exactly, the vines loosened and I guess the magic wore off. I managed to get through the rough of it and climb out." It was not the best excuse, but it was all Merlin could come up with.

Arthur seemed to except that answer and went to his desk to deal with paperwork. He did not say anything else about Merlin working. He would not tell the servant this, but he was glad to see him up and moving. When he thought he was dead he did not want to think how it would have been without the boy there at his side. When he and the knights got back to Camelot, they did not have time to think about Merlin much because Nimueh was attacking, and now he was glad he never had to stop and think about it. He just hoped that all the horror was behind them. He thought back to that day, it had plagued his mind since Merlin came back.

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Arthur, Merlin, and the knights were following tracks in the woods. Gaius had told them to destroy a stone that was causing magical creatures to attack Camelot. He hoped it would have been a short and easy journey, but knew that anytime one was dealing with magic, they could never be too careful. They seemed to be getting closer when something seemed to hit a tree trunk near one of the knight's faces and explode. Arthur was quick on his guard and the knights made a formation. With their swords drawn, they waited for their attacker to show themselves.

The air was silent, all that could be heard was the uneasy breathing of the men. Arthur saw Merlin's head snap towards the trees before another blast of something almost hit them. This time however it did not stop with one, more and more attacks were coming from multiple directions, and Arthur realized this was no normal weapon. They were fighting the sorcerer.

"Spread out and find the source!" Arthur gave his orders and took off with two knights towards the place of the last blast. He looked back to see Merlin walking opposite of them, but did not have time to think on it.

They never found the sorcerer, but they did find the stone, a dark red ruby-like object, and destroyed it. Arthur thought this would be cause for celebration and their trouble would be over, but he was wrong. They all met back in the clearing where the attack happened and noticed someone missing.

"Where's Merlin?" Arthur did not see his servant anywhere.

Leon looked around. "I am not sure Sire, I do not remember seeing him in the attack."

Arthur nodded towards the spot he saw Merlin last. "I saw him go this way, stupid idiot's probably lost out there."

They walked off towards that direction calling the boy's name. His tracks were clear enough to follow in the snow and made it easy enough to see that Merlin was not just lost. All the knights saw the signs of a struggle in a clearing.

Arthur's face fell. "Find him."

The knights took his orders and began searching. Arthur walked across the small clearing at something that caught his eye. There were marks in the snow as if someone had been thrown and skidded across the ground as well as a few drops of red. Arthur bent down to look closer, blood.

"Sire!"

Arthur rose up to find Leon standing next to a tree holding Merlin's red scarf. It was tattered, but clearly the boy's. The prince walked slowly over to Leon and grabbed the scarf from his hands.

"We need to find him." Arthur began to look around.

The knights followed suit and they looked until dusk was approaching, there was no sign of him anywhere.

One of the knights took a step forward. "Sire, if I may, we need to get back to Camelot in case the creatures are not gone, I hate to think it, but I am afraid Merlin's fate is sealed."

Arthur looked at the scarf still in his hand. If he could he would not give up until he found something, but the knight was right. He had a promise to keep to his people, and he had to make sure they were safe. They were having no luck finding Merlin, so Arthur decided he would send search parties when he got back to Camelot. If he would have known he would never get that chance then maybe he would have stayed and searched.

"Yes, you are right of course. We will ride back." Arthur stared at the clearing hoping something would present itself to help him find Merlin, but nothing ever came.

Merlin got put to the back to Arthur's mind when he got back to Camelot and found a sorceress attacking. He had to protect his people above all else.

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Arthur thought about that day. He was practically standing on top of Merlin and had no idea. He kept thinking that if he would have followed Merlin when the attacks started, maybe he could have protected him. Or if he went back when Merlin managed to drag himself out of the tree, he could have helped the boy back to Camelot. But Merlin was forced to get out of the tree alone and walk to Camelot half dead. Arthur tried not to think about it and went back to his papers. Not long after Merlin had finished picking up, the warning bells went off. Arthur ran to his window to see people running and a cloaked figure approaching the castle.

Merlin looked at Arthur. "What is it?"

Arthur looked angry. "She's back."

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**AN: Thanks for reading!  
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	4. The Battle

**Thanks PurpleQuartz, Irene, and youwannabekate for reviewing!**

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Nimueh was back. Merlin knew it was just a matter of time, but he hoped that it would not happen this soon. He was not ready to fight her, but Merlin knew that he was the only hope Camelot had. Arthur rushed around the room and grabbed his sword and armor. The door barged open and Sir Leon was there.

"Sire, the witch is attacking again, your father is requesting your presence immediately."

Arthur nodded. "I'll be right there." He turned to his servant. "Merlin I want you to go help Gaius with whatever he needs, we will need to set up a medical area."

At first Merlin wanted to protest, but he knew that being away from Arthur would give him easy access to fight Nimueh, so he agreed. "Alright." Merlin left the room and rushed back to Gaius'.

As Merlin ran through the halls he thought about how he was going to defeat Nimueh. He had to find the strength in him to beat her, and do it discretely. If anyone saw him use magic, he would be done for. Once Merlin reached his chambers he rushed in.

"Gaius! It's Nimueh, she's attacking."

Gaius was already gathering supplies. "I thought as much." He looked Merlin up and down. "Merlin you are in no shape to go against her, if you do, I fear she will get the best of you."

"She caught me by surprise last time Gaius, but I will not let it happen again. I have to defeat her, if I don't she will destroy Camelot."

The man knew that he would not be able to say anything to persuade the stubborn boy. "What will you do?"

Merlin shook his head. "I have no idea."

"Be careful." He put his hand on the boy's shoulder and left to go help with anyone hurt in battle.

Merlin ran to his room and grabbed his spell book from underneath his bed. There had to be something in there to help him defeat the sorceress. His mind was still stuck with the memories of what happened to him a few days before. He almost died, and if he could not do something this time, he and everyone else would die.

As Merlin flipped through the pages his eyes caught something, it was a simple spell if done correctly and could rid Merlin of Nimueh for good. He would have to catch her by surprise though without exposing himself to the knights. Merlin shut the book and ran to the courtyard where Nimueh was attacking.

When he got there, he found that Nimueh was winning. She was using spells to throw knights left and right. Merlin knew that if he did anything then it would tip the priestess off that he was still alive, and then he could be exposed. The warlock scanned the area to try and find Arthur, as long as he was safe, then everything would be okay.

He stayed back wracking his brain for a way to get Nimueh on her own. But his thoughts were interrupted by flying creatures that were making their way into the courtyard. Nimueh looked bored as if she was going to let the creatures finish off the knights. Merlin knew that her true goal was to go after the source of Camelot itself, and that was Uther. With Arthur and knights distracted, Nimueh began to make her way towards the Throne Room. This would be the perfect opportunity for Merlin to make his move.

He followed her down the corridor until she went into a hallway. Merlin locked the door behind him quietly and continued to follow her. Before she could reach the other door at the end of the hallway, Merlin held out his hand, closed, and locked it with magic.

"Nimueh!"

The priestess turned around with a shocked look on her face. "You? You should be dead."

"I thought that about you once, and here we both are." Merlin was determined this time.

She smiled. "Then I guess we both don't want to fail this time do we?"

"I won't, but you, that's another matter."

Nimueh's smile faded as she glared at the boy that caused her so much trouble. She shot her hand out and sent a fireball towards Merlin, but he dodged out of the way. As he jumped to the ground he sent a force towards Nimueh, but she blocked it.

"You have no idea how powerful I am Merlin." She sent a force at him and it sent him sliding across the floor and into the wall.

Merlin ducked down a little pretending to be more hurt than he was, though a sharp pain was shooting through his shoulder. "And by now you should know how powerful I am." He rose up and let his magic take over. "Ahyrdan!" His golden eyes watched as Nimueh stopped dead in her tracks.

She gasped and tried to unleash her magic onto Merlin, but it was too late. Nimueh could not move any longer, she shook as her skin hardened and turned grey. She began to match the castle walls. Nimueh was able to meet Merlin's eyes one last time, and he could see the golden fire behind them. But before anything could happen her entire body turned to stone. Merlin stood up from the floor and looked at the statue that now held the priestess. He found it fitting considering what she did to him, but Merlin knew not to make the same mistake as her.

Merlin stared at Nimueh, all he had to do was look at the statue and let his magic do the rest. The stone shattered, and pieces of rubble went everywhere. Once the dust settled Merlin checked to make sure Nimueh was finally destroyed.

All seemed well. There were pieces of stone on the floor. Merlin ran from the hallway and out to the courtyard to see if the creatures were still there. When he got there, Arthur and the knights were looking around confused. The creatures were gone.

Arthur spotted Merlin and ran up to him. "Where did she go?"

Merlin looked back at the corridor he came from. "Um, she's…gone."

"What do you mean gone?" The prince gave the boy a quizzical look.

"Uh, she sort of turned to stone and exploded." Merlin looked at him hoping he would not ask any more questions.

"Just like that?"

Merlin shrugged and acted like it just happened.

Arthur continued to eye Merlin, but just rolled his eyes and accepted it.

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Later that night the knights were celebrating their so called victory and Merlin was retiring to his chambers. He knew that Gaius would want to know all the details of Nimueh's defeat. What worried Merlin most was whatever Nimueh did before she turned to stone completely. She did something, but Merlin felt no different. He walked back into his chambers to see an anxious Gaius at the table. The man welcomed him with a gentle hug.

"I'm glad you're alright." Gaius saw the uneasy look in Merlin's eye. "What's wrong?"

Merlin shook his head. "I'm not sure. She did something before she turned to stone completely, but I'm not sure what."

"She cast a spell?"

Merlin nodded. "She said nothing, and I feel nothing, so I have no idea what's to come, but I don't like it."

Gaius patted the boy's unhurt shoulder. "I am sure it was nothing Merlin, you defeated Nimueh and Camelot is safe once more. You should rest and not worry over it."

"I hope you're right."

While that night should have been filled with celebration, Gaius and Merlin both knew deep down that whatever Nimueh did was something that could not be ignored. The man looked at Merlin's shoulder in silence, and the boy hoped that everything with Nimueh was finally over.

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**AN: Thanks for reading! **


	5. Nimueh's Gift

**Thank you grayember13, Irene, Blue Turtle of AWESOMENESS, and Kermit's Rainbow Connection for reviewing! **

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Merlin awoke the morning after destroying Nimueh feeling sore and groggy. His night was filled with nightmares. He was worried as to what Nimueh had done to him in her last moments. He sat up stretching his shoulder; it was hurting worse again because of the battle the day before. Sometimes Merlin just wished he could take a day off from looking after Arthur, but he knew the Prince would be angry if he did not show up that morning. He thought for moment about having Gaius say he was unfit to work, but that would just lead to trouble later, so he shook off his pains and left his room.

Gaius had breakfast ready for him when he got downstairs. "How are you doing?" He handed Merlin his bowl and sat down at the table.

Merlin shrugged. "Sore, but I'm fine."

"You should rest Merlin, you weren't fully healed before the fight with Nimueh." Concern was written all over the man's face.

Merlin gobbled down his food and headed towards the Prince's chambers. "Gaius, I'm fine, I just want to get past all this Nimueh stuff."

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"Nimueh."

"What?" Merlin was closing the door to Arthur's room, carrying a silver tray with his breakfast on it.

"I want to know what happened. It doesn't make any sense." Arthur was standing in his night shirt with both hands resting on his desk. His eyes were locked on Merlin's.

Merlin sat the food tray down and began to set up the Prince's meal. "I don't know either."

"Well you were there Merlin, surely you saw something."

Since the fight Merlin had not thought much about what to tell Arthur. "Um, I'm not sure really, one moment she was there, and the next she was turned to stone and blown up."

"And you saw nothing." Arthur looked skeptical.

The Prince was not buying this. "Well she threw me against a wall. I guess I blacked out for a short time, maybe."

"Leave it to you to pass out during fight." Arthur rolled his eyes. The Prince looked disgruntled, but seemed to accept Merlin's answer for the time being.

The rest of the day was spent with light work, which Merlin was more than thankful for. He seemed extra clumsy throughout the day. He had tripped three times, and almost broke some ornate object given to Arthur as a birthday present. He was stiff from the battle and not completely healed. As the day progressed, thoughts of Nimueh went further and further from Merlin's mind. It was not until that night that his thoughts returned.

Arthur was dressing into night clothes when Merlin stopped what he was doing and doubled over, he groaned as if he was going to be sick. When the pain hit him, Merlin thought at first it was from his side wound from the tree, but then the pain came stronger and deeper. He grasped his stomach and fell forward. His stomach was knotting and Merlin realized that whatever Nimueh had done to him was happening. All he could think about was getting out of there. It was possible that his magic would react to this, or that Nimueh messed with it somehow, and this was neither the time nor place Merlin wanted to be when that happened.

"What's wrong?" Arthur was not sure what to do.

Merlin gasped. "I'm just not feeling well. May I go?" He clutched his stomach tight, trying his hardest to cover the pain in front of Arthur.

Arthur nodded. "Yes, of course. Do you need help getting to Gaius?"

"No! I-I'll be fine." He began to run out of the room still doubled over. "Goodnight sire." He needed to get to Gaius.

As Merlin rushed through the door, he searched for him mentor. The old man was sitting at his desk reading. Gaius looked up as the door opened to see his ward standing there in pain.

"Merlin! What's happened?" The man helped Merlin to the other side of the room, and leaned him back onto the bed.

"I don't know, I think this may be Nimueh's spell." He said through clenched teeth, still holding onto this stomach with dear life.

"What's wrong , where does it hurt exactly?" Gaius began to scan the boy over trying to figure out what was happening?

Sweat beaded across Merlin's face. "Not sure, stomach is the worse, feels like I've swallowed rocks or something."

"Here, take this." Gaius handed Merlin a sleeping draught from the table, and the boy took it in thanks.

Gaius helped Merlin to his room and got him settled in. He wanted to examine Merlin to try and figure out the cause of his pain. After Merlin fell asleep Gaius got to work. He raised the warlock's shirt and started to poke and prod. A discontented look went across his face; Merlin's stomach felt strange, harder than it should have been. What worried Gaius was the hardness that spread across the boy's entire stomach; it was not in lumps like some illnesses he had come across in the past. Gaius had never seen anything like this, and he knew that magic was the cause, the only problem was, he had no idea what could be wrong.

The next day Merlin awoke late feeling a little better. The pain was mostly gone, but he still felt funny. To Merlin, however, having most of the pain gone meant that he was well enough to act like he was fine. He exited his room to see a surprised Gaius looking up at him from his books.

"Merlin, you should be resting."

He was putting on his jacket. "I feel better today, whatever it was I think the worst of it is over." He knew that was wishful thinking.

Gaius shook his head. "Merlin whatever was wrong with you is like nothing I've seen before. I am not sure what was wrong, but I would advise you to stay in bed today."

"Gaius I'll feel better if I can move around, I just want to get to work."

The man did not say anything, but nodded in disapproval. Merlin gave him a small smile and headed out the door.

When Merlin walked through the door of Arthur's chambers, the Prince gave him a look similar to Gaius' upon seeing him. He had not expected his servant to come into work today. In fact he was going to go check up on him after he had finished his paperwork, to make sure nothing serious had happened the day before. Merlin standing there was enough proof for Arthur to see that his servant was fine, so he did not bring up what had happened.

"Merlin, good, you came just in time for laundry." He smiled at his servant.

Sometimes Merlin did not know why he did not stay in bed when he got the chance. He gave an angry smile and collected the laundry around the room. The rest of the day went fine and with light work. He knew that though Arthur did not say anything, he was trying to let Merlin have it easy throughout the day. Merlin had felt some pain while working, but nothing seemed of worry to him. It was not until he was leaving Arthur's room for the night that another strange thing occurred.

Arthur was getting into bed as Merlin left his chambers and he felt fine, but almost as soon as he shut the door his throat became tight. He tried to clear his throat, but it did not work. Merlin began to cough and hit his chest to loosen up whatever was causing this to happen. The more Merlin coughed the harder breathing became, and soon his head felt light. Arthur must have heard the commotion, because he opened his door to see Merlin leaning on the wall, gasping for air.

"Merlin?" He came over and grabbed the servants arm.

Merlin looked up at him still gasping.

Arthur did not waste any time, he pulled Merlin's arm and helped him get to Gaius' as quick as possible. A few moments later he burst through the door and rushed over to the bed to set Merlin on it. Gaius was writing something down when the boys came in, and hurried over.

"What happened?" Gaius was feeling Merlin's throat.

Arthur shook his head. "I don't know, he was fine before he left, but then I heard him coughing out in the hall, he seems like he can't breathe."

Gaius started to mix a few things together at his work bench, creating a strange blue liquid. He then grabbed a rag and went back over to Merlin. "Try to drink this."

Merlin nodded and tried not to cough as the blue liquid was poured down his throat. It choked him on the way down and he began to cough more. Gaius held the rag up to his mouth, and after a few coughing fits later something started to come up. Once whatever was caught in his throat came out, Merlin could breathe once more. He sucked in the breaths and drank the water Gaius had fetched during his coughing fit. The physician, however, was focused on the substance in the rag, as was Arthur.

"What is that?" Arthur had a confused and disgusted looking face.

"I'm not sure." Gaius eyed the substance close. It was clear and thick looking. To both of the boys' dismay he touched the substance and rubbed it together with two fingers.

"Gaius?" Merlin had calmed down enough to speak again.

"I think…" Both boys were waiting with eagerness to see what the man would say. "I believe, it's…tree sap." He looked at the boys in disbelief.

Arthur looked confused while Merlin looked shocked. There was only one thing on the warlock's mind at that moment, _this was Nimueh's last spell. _

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**AN: Thanks for reading, hope you liked the chapter! **


	6. The Last Hope

**Thank you Irene, Kermit's Rainbow Connection, IndiaMoore, grayember13, and LordOfTheSuperWhomerlockians for reviewing! It is very much appreciated! **

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"Tree sap? How is that possible?" Arthur looked confused at the substance Gaius held in his hand.

Gaius looked up at him. "Sire, I believe magic has been involved. Nimueh must have done something to Merlin before she died." 

Arthur looked at Merlin whose eyes were focused on the floor; he could tell he was hiding something. "You knew she did something, didn't you?"

Merlin raised his eyes to the Prince. Now was the time to lie. "I wasn't sure, her eyes turned gold before she turned to stone, but I-I didn't think whatever she tried to do, worked."

"You didn't think?" Arthur threw his hands up in the air. "Merlin you know how dangerous magic can be, especially when dealing with Nimueh. Gaius what is happening to him?"

Gaius stared at Arthur and then Merlin. "I cannot be certain, but it seems that Nimueh has somehow cursed Merlin into becoming a tree."

"What?" Merlin's eyes were wide. What was with that witch and trees?

"Well from what has been happening of late, it seems like the most probably cause." Gaius was trying to make sense of the whole thing himself.

"What else has been happening?" Arthur gave Merlin a demanding look.

Gaius, however, answered. "The other day when his stomach was bothering him…at the time I found it quite strange, but looking back on it now, I believe Merlin's skin has turned bark-like underneath."

"Bark?" Arthur was trying to grasp all this.

Merlin looked down at his stomach and poked it a little. Gaius was right, it was hard and if he had to compare it to anything, it would be tree bark. This was getting scary, fast.

Arthur was trying to think of anything that could help. "Well what do we do?"

"I don't know, I have never heard of a curse like this before. I shall look in my books, but I'm not sure if they will help."

Arthur nodded. "Merlin, help Gaius if you are up to it; let me know what you find."

"Yes sire." Merlin was still dumbfounded by this new information. As soon as Arthur left the room, he headed into his own to look through his magic book; there had to be something in there to break this curse.

Gaius walked into Merlin's room; the boy was on his bed flipping through pages of his magic book. The man could hear a slight wheeze in his breathing, he was not sure how fast this spell would escalate, and if he could do anything about it when it was complete.

Merlin looked up. "Did you find something?"

The old man shook his head. "Merlin, whatever spell Nimueh used will be hard to break, it will take a strong spell."

"I know, it's just finding a spell that will break it, and considering how I feel right now, I might not have that much time."

Gaius sighed and went back to his books while Merlin spent the entire night in his magic book, attempting to find a cure for the curse. All the while he hoped that maybe Nimueh had not intended for him to become a tree, but just affect him somehow. Merlin knew, though, that Nimueh had wanted to hurt him as much as she could. Being a tree for the rest of his life sounded like a pretty good idea of torture to Merlin, so Nimueh did a pretty good last spell. When the sun rose Gaius came into Merlin's room, also tired from a sleepless night of research. Neither man had come across anything useful. Gaius walked over to Merlin and sat on his bed.

"Merlin, I do not believe there is anything in these books to help us."

Merlin sighed. "I know Gaius, but there must be something. I can't just let this happen."

"Maybe you don't have to." Gaius gave Merlin a look as if he were hinting at something.

The warlock knitted his brow. "What do you mean?"

"There may be one other that can help you fight this thing, and we both know who that is."

"No, Gaius I swore not to talk to him anymore; I can't, the debt is too great." The boy's eyes were wide.

"Merlin, he may be your only hope."

Merlin knew Gaius was right. No matter how much he wanted to get around it, he would have to go visit the dragon. Merlin just hoped the dragon would speak to him since their last visit was not the best. After some mental preparation, Merlin snuck his way under the castle like he had so many times before. He lit a torch with magic and made the long trek down the stairwell into the deep cavern. At first Merlin did not see the dragon in the large cave.

"Dragon? Dragon! I know you are here, I need to talk to you."

Merlin could hear the swooping of the dragon's wings as he landed on the big rock in front of the boy. "Ah young warlock; I thought I was never to see you again."

"I need your help." The boy had a desperate look on his face.

Anger spread across the dragon's face. "Why is it, when you need my help you have no problem asking, but when I need yours you insult me?"

"Believe me, if I could go to anyone else I would, but this is a problem I cannot avoid." Merlin flinched a little at the pain underneath his skin.

"Hmm, something is not right with you." The anger subsided a bit and was replaced with slight concern.

The boy nodded. "Yes, Nimueh came back, and she's done something to me."

The dragon gave Merlin a curious look. "Did you not destroy the witch at the Isle of the Blessed?"

"I thought I had, but somehow she came back. I have destroyed her for good this time, but she did not leave without giving me something first." Merlin was trying to think of how to tell the dragon just what Nimueh had done.

"And what did the witch do to you?"

"I-I think I am turning into a tree." Merlin waited for the dragon to laugh at him, but that was not the case.

"That is a strong curse, young warlock, it will not be easy to break."

"But there is a way?" Merlin looked hopeful.

"Yes, you must find the root of the Elder Tree and use a counter curse to stop yourself from turning into a tree, but beware Merlin, you do not have much time."

"Where can I find this tree?"

"I am not certain, but it will contain much magic."

Merlin nodded. "Thank you." He began back up the steps.

"And Merlin, I hope you understand that this information does not come for free. I expect you to pay me back in the future." The dragon glared into his Merlin's eyes.

Merlin said nothing, but continued to walk up the stairs. As soon as he got back to his chambers he began to look through Gaius' books to find anything about the Elder Tree. He had no luck after the first few books, and hoped Gaius could shed some light on the subject after he was done with his rounds.

Gaius returned midday to find Merlin nose deep in his books. "I hope this means the dragon was of some help."

Merlin was trying not to think about the dragon at the moment. "Have you heard of the Elder Tree?"

Gaius thought for a moment noticing Merlin scratching at his side a lot. "That does sound familiar." He went to his bookshelf and began searching his library.

Merlin shut the book he was looking at, and waited for Gaius to find what he was looking for.

"Yes, here it is." Gaius got out a book and began flipping through the pages. "Here…The Elder Tree is of the old religion and is very old. The Elder tree is related strongly to death, and it said to bring bad luck to those who sleep under it, or cut its branches. It represents life in death and death in life. It is said that the Elder Tree only grows where human blood has been shed."

"That's cheery isn't it?" Merlin slumped a bit in his chair. "Does it say where I can find this tree?"

Gaius shook his head. "No, but if it is from the old religion, it should be intertwined with magic."

"That's what the dragon said. I can't find this tree if all I have to go on is that it has magic in it." He gave the man a desperate look.

Gaius sat down across from Merlin. "Well let us think. Nimueh would have needed access to this tree; she probably prepared the curse as a failsafe, in case something went wrong with her scheme."

Merlin thought for a moment. "What about the Isle of the Blessed?"

"Hmm…maybe, but I do not recall a tree like that being there."

"Me neither."

Merlin thought about where this tree could be and then it him. His mind went back to a few weeks ago. When he was fighting Nimueh in the forest the vines of the tree grabbed around his ankles and forced him deep inside the tree. In his time spent down there he felt magic, but thought it was just Nimueh's, now, however, he was thinking that the tree ran on its own magic.

Gaius could see the haunted look in the boy's eyes; it reminded him of the first time Merlin awoke after being found outside of the castle. He put a gentle hand on the boy's shoulder. "Merlin, are you alright?"

Merlin sucked in a deep breath. "It's the tree."

"What?" Gaius did not understand.

The warlock locked eyes with his mentor. "The tree Nimueh trapped me in, that is the Elder tree, it has to be."

"Merlin, are you sure?"

"I hope not, but when I was down in that tree, I felt something dark, I thought it was just Nimueh's magic, but it wasn't, it…that's the tree." Merlin was shaking and tears gathered in his eyes. It broke Gaius' heart to think that Merlin would have to go back there.

Not long after their discovery, Arthur came to see what they had figured out. When he walked in Merlin was gathering up supplies, which was a good sign. What he did not like was the look on his servant's face.

"What did you find?"

Merlin stopped what he was doing and looked at the prince. "We have to find a root in a tree, the Elder Tree, its filled and magic and said to be cursed."

"Well isn't that delightful. Do we have any idea where this tree is?"

Merlin had a troubled look. "Yes, I've been there before."

Arthur looked confused. "You've…" Then it clicked. "Oh."

The look on Merlin's face confirmed Arthur's theory.

"How much time do you have?" Arthur knew that this was getting serious fast, and they would have no time to lose.

"Not long."

"We will leave right away then." Arthur left to go gather up supplies of his own.

Soon enough Arthur was back and ready to head out. He had told his father he was going on a small hunting trip, and since threat levels had been down the last few weeks, Uther agreed. Arthur wasted no time in getting back to Merlin's chambers; he knew this had to be taken care of as soon as possible. After saying goodbye to a very worried Gaius, the two set off towards the place where this whole thing began. As they rode into the forest, Arthur could not help but notice the growing stiffness in Merlin; he hoped they would have enough time to stop the spell from taking over completely. Aside from the obvious pain and discomfort his servant was going through, what bothered Arthur most was the silence. He was used to Merlin blabbering on about this and that, but as they rode, he did not hear one peep.

As the two rode through the forest, all Merlin could think about was his time spent in the tree. He was dreading going anywhere near that place, and just the thought of it gave him chills. At that moment he just wished he could have some sort of distraction to take his mind off of his impending doom. As if someone had been listening in on Merlin's thoughts, an arrow flew past him and into a tree. Merlin pulled his horse back and jumped off as did Arthur. Soon enough bandits flew out of the trees and attacked the men. Merlin began dodging attacks by the bandits while Arthur started fighting them with his sword. He tried using magic to stop the bandits around him by making a tree branch fall from above, but Merlin noticed his magic seemed to be slow. He could feel the magic flow through him, but it had a delay to it; the curse was affecting his magic, which made him fear how he would be able to stop the curse if he found the Elder Tree root.

Arthur was fighting bandits all around him. When they first attacked he was going to tell Merlin to get behind him, but they got separated before he had a chance. Arthur had to hope that Merlin's strange luck would be with him again before he could get to his servant. The Prince had taken out almost all the bandits, but there were still a couple going after Merlin. Arthur was running towards them, but before he could take them out, one drew his sword towards the servant. Arthur sped up, but stopped short when he saw the bandit's sword plunge into Merlin stomach and the boy lurched forward.

"Merlin!"

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**AN: Don't kill me, had to put a cliff hanger here for my own amusement. Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Story is almost complete! **


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